


Bask in the Moonlight

by ethereal_xo



Series: R/S 24 Hour Challenge [6]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Drabble, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Full Moon, Hogwarts Forbidden Forest, M/M, Pack Bonding, Post-First War with Voldemort, Post-Hogwarts, R/S 24 Hour Challenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 16:13:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17410088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ethereal_xo/pseuds/ethereal_xo
Summary: "Immediately he heard the soft panting of another animal. He turned and saw a black dog bounding toward him. He did not feel any threat. This dog was a friend. More than a friend. Pack."





	Bask in the Moonlight

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little thing I wrote about Padfoot and Moony under the full moon. I'd love to venture into this again at some point. Let me know what you think!

The moonlight shone brightly down on the river as the wolf admired it, lapping up a few mouthfuls of the crystal water with his tongue. It was one of the few places in the forest where the trees left a gap for the sky to be seen. He pressed his paws into the wet clay of the riverbank, raised his head up to the sky and howled loudly.

Immediately he heard the soft panting of another animal. He turned and saw a black dog bounding toward him. He did not feel any threat. This dog was a friend. More than a friend. Pack.

The dog came closer, quivering. The wolf could smell the excitement off him in bounds. He was still cautious, letting the wolf lead. The wolf knew that he would follow him anywhere that he went. That was how pack worked. He led, the rest followed.

The dog jumped on him and the wolf snapped grumpily. The dog paid no heed, scrambling until he was on top of the wolf’s back. He slid off his back again in a yelp, landing on his feet in the soft mud. The wolf huffed and stalked off into the undergrowth, knowing that the dog would not be far behind.

This was the way they spent one night a month, every month. The days where a young man was turned into a powerful beast and his friends became animals to accompany him. Tonight was different, in that only one friend was with the wolf. He felt calm tonight.

They tumbled in the fragrant grass of the forest, snapping at each other. They fought over a wooden stick, they chased Nifflers and baby Hippogriffs.

Eventually, it had to come to an end. The moon disappeared and the sun rose, casting its watery yellow glow onto the grassy enclosure. The dog became a tall boy, black hair knotted with twigs and leaves. The wolf became another, paler boy, naked and weak. They settled at the foot of a tree, counting the rings of a tree stump nearby.  They basked in the light shining through the delicate green leaves of the trees. Then, when the pale boy felt strong enough, they made their way back to the tumbledown shack to sleep.

This is how it was before that fateful night, the night that locked the dog away. The wolf howled for him every full moon, but he never came. He scratched and growled and fought against the shackles he himself created. The dog never came. None of them did.

No longer would he bask in the moonlight or play in the fragrant grass. The pack was gone. His friend was gone. And now he was all alone.


End file.
